Elizabethan
English is a part of Early Modern English and what follows is an introduction
to the study of these languages, with a focus on Elizabethan English. This
study is with the future in mind of reproducing the language in a written
format. The fact that a written format has been specified is important as there
will be very little if no discussion on those subjects which are associated with
vocal considerations, such as pronunciation. The idea of the research is to
seek the true language at its core without the external influences of modern
language practices. However, in order to study the language such influences
need to be taken into account.
The language
needs to be studied as it was in its essence. This means that it needs to be
studied and appreciated without judging the language on the basis of modern
norms of language such as a spelling, punctuation and grammar. These influences
are the prime ones which will affect the study of the language and while they
need to be accepted as important and significant, it is the core language which
is sought. In order to achieve this real focus is needed.
The focus
will be on Elizabethan English; this is not Early Modern English as this is a
much broader subject covering a much broader period (c.1400 – 1800).
Elizabethan English forms a part of this period and as such some of the
reference will be more general, especially where specific references are not
available. As stated, the focus is primarily on Elizabethan English, or to be
more precise the English of the reign of Elizabeth I (1558 -1603). The language
was flexible and this needs to be noted in order to truly appreciate it, so to
will parts of the research. While this is an introduction and uses secondary
materials, in order to truly understand the language the research must come
from primary materials. This allows for the least interference in the study.
Secondary sources will be used to support the research in those areas of
language technicalities in order to appreciate the rules of the language.
For the
purposes of the following discussion, there will be a three parts. The first
part of this discussion will be modern considerations and evidences this presents
the sort of evidence which is available for the researcher and also deals with
some of the considerations which need to be made in such research. The second
part will follow with an examination of the evidence from the period which is
being researched in order to find the most useful parts of it. This will also
examine how authors of the period which have come through to the modern can be
used as useful resources. Finally will be a discussion of the language in
general with a focus on those issues which are present in the language itself.
These need to be considered especially considering the changes over time in the
language.
Bibliographic Note
For the
most part, the references for this investigation of the language will come from
a single author with others in support. The author whose work will be the
primary focus of the investigation is David Crystal. This would seem to limit
the research and possibly only give it a single point of view, however, after
reading the information present from this and other authors, the approach given
by Crystal in his various texts is the most supported. The other material
available either repeats or reinforces the theory and information presented by
Crystal in his various works. Further information about this author can be
found at http://www.davidcrystal.com/.
Considerations of the Modern Era
“Most of Early Modern English is
the same as Modern English.” (Crystal, 2008:230). The important word here is
“most” as there are important differences which must be highlighted in order to
understand the language as it was in the period in which it was created and
used, using modern norms of language results in a slanted view of the language
and an inaccurate appreciation of the language. This particular aspect is even
so true in the discussion of rules by which the language should be understood.
“it took some 400 years before a
‘standard English’ evolved – a variety of English in which educated people all
came to use the same rules of grammar, spelling and punctuation.” (Crystal,
2010:8)
This
four-hundred year period existed from about 1400 to about 1800, or to give a
more literary approach from the time of Chaucer until about the time of the
writing of the first real recognised dictionary by Johnson. Shakespeare is
found in the middle of this period in a time where the language was in its most
tumultuous time of change. This is one of the things that make studying the
language of this period so interesting.
What needs
to be noted by the investigator of the language is that there were different
varieties of Early Modern English (EModE) depending on subject, audience and
speaker, this is actually similar to today, the language is dependent on the
situation in which it is used (Crystal, 2008:221). Evidence for this can be
found in comparing the language used on the street in comparison to that used
in the courts. While Present Day English (PDE) is more homogeneous, it still
carries some important differences depending on the audience and the speaker. The
advantage that is present in the study of language in this particular instance
can be found in the written language.
“scripts can be called
ideographic … since they are not subject to sound change, they can remain
stable over a long period of time and thus permit readers to understand older
texts (in principle).” (Görlach, 1997:33)
This is an
advantage of the type of script that was used to write the language in the
period. Unlike Asian scripts which are pictographic, and thus a single
character can mean a variety of things, most western scripts are ideographic
meaning that they mean the same thing regardless of where or when they were
printed. Thus there is a less likelihood of misinterpretation when it comes to
the script and thus reduces the likelihood of misinterpretation.
Linguistic Detail
“in Shakespeare’s plays,
especially after about 1600, the life of the piece, of the whole business of
personation, is in large part not in the gesture but in linguistic detail;”
(Kermode, 2000:6)
The period
being studied here is, as stated, the period of Elizabeth I’s reign, as such
1600 is on the later edge of the period, but the highlighting of linguistic
detail applies very much to the language of the period in general. The language
of the period was specific to the purpose it was designed for. It is these
linguistic details that must not get lost in order to more completely
understand the language. “The study of the English language relies on an
accumulation of tiny details” (Crystal, 2010:8).
It is not
appropriate to approach the study of Elizabethan English with the broad strokes
which can be made of the modern language as the rules were very much in flux at
the time. This allowed for a great deal of malleability in the language and
much more movement for authors to express themselves in. Details must be found
and examined in and of themselves in order to understand the language.
Sources
For a
complete understanding of the language, authors are required from different
parts of the period in order to properly understand the language and appreciate
all its elements (Nevalainen, 2006:13). This is in order to completely cover
the period and thus gain a much better idea about how and where the language
changed and also did not change. It is also important that different types of
sources are used both verse and prose in order to completely understand the
language. This becomes even more important when it is realised that the two had
separation between them, “the trade of the dramatic poet was different and
increasingly remote from the conventional, bookish rhetorical display.”
(Kermode, 2000:10). The authors of the day would write to what was required of
them, much as is done today.
With regard
to the sources chosen for research, it is, as always, important to access those
sources which are as close to the originals as possible in order to gain the
greatest understanding of the language. Many books have been facsimiled and
placed in the public for access, this is a great boon to the study of the
language, however the authenticity of such documents must be examined
especially where they have been changed for ease of reading. Transliteration is
less useful as some meaning is lost in the “modernisation” of the text in the
process. (Görlach, 1997:34). The only way to ensure that the document is as it
was is to use a facsimile of the original document, unchanged, or as close to
the original as possible.
Dictionaries
Dictionaries
are a most useful resource for the study of language as they present words in a
format in which they can be understood and thus used. Dictionaries have even
been produced for the understanding of previous and foreign languages, however
they are not infallible. “All dictionaries should be regularly revised, to take
account of new findings and methods,” (Crystal and Crystal, 2002: vii). Updates
of language happen even in the modern period and with research into previous
forms of English the same needs to be made of those languages and thus the
dictionaries which are available.
Further,
the inclusion of one word or another must be considered. Just as with any
document it is up to the author to decide wether or not something is included
in the document, the same can be said for dictionaries. “It is, one must always
remember, a matter of judgement. Lexicographers are as human and as creative as
anyone else” (Crystal and Crystal, 2002: vii). This is not to say that such
resources are useless it is merely to say that consideration needs to be made
by the researcher as to the approach taken by the author and care taken. Such
resources should be used to supplement the research and findings of the
researcher. Of course the best kind of resource for the investigator is after
all the one which is produced through their own work and understanding and thus
gains them the greatest insight.
“a dictionary is not a substitute
for editorial notes, which focus on extracting the full meaning of a word in
its individual context, … they [dictionaries] attempt to make generalizations
about the meaning of words.” (Crystal and Crystal, 2002: vii)
Learning Words
Past
languages are foreign languages, even if this is not recognised by some. The
language is different in many different ways and needs to be taken note of in
the research. Just as with any foreign language the words need to be learnt in
a similar fashion (Crystal, 2008:152). This means that there needs to be some
focus in the process in order to completely understand the language.
For the
most part people will only come across languages of the past in the
investigation of some other subject. This results in a haphazard approach to
learning the language and only gaining enough understanding for what is
required at the time. With such limited, spaced learning it is difficult to
build up intuition about “normal” vocabulary of EModE (Crystal, 2008:152), or
any language for that matter. The investigation of the language must be approached
as with any project with completeness.
Writing
down a word and then investigating it later takes the word out of context in
much the same way that an artefact removed from the presence of others destroys
some of its meaning. It is better to discover a word and then investigate it as
it is found in order to retain its contextual situation (Crystal, 2008:153).
This enables the researcher to gain a much more complete understanding of the
word than if it is taken out of its context. Indeed the other words around such
words assist in the understanding of the word, thus the context assists with
the understanding of the word. The associations between words assist with their
comprehension such things as antonymy, synonymy, and collocation or specific
associations between words (Crystal, 2008:154). The words really need to be
learnt and understood individually and in association with other words in order
for a complete understanding of the word and thus the language as a whole.
Evidence for Past Languages
The first
place an investigator needs to look with regard to any piece of research is the
evidence which has been left behind. In the case of Early Modern English, and
by default, Elizabethan English there is a large amount of printed material
which can be useful. This is even taking into account those problems which can
be encountered mentioned above. With regard to this it is most useful to
examine the reason for what has been left for the researcher, and how this can
be used to increase understanding.
Printed Material
For most
modern languages there is a large amount of printed material and even
hand-written material which is useful to the researcher. However as the
language gets older the presence of certain materials begins to wane as much of
it is perishable, this is the reason that the most ancient languages are
studied from stone inscriptions as parchments often did not survive. In the
case of the English of the sixteenth century, printed material forms only a
small part of what would have been written as the printing press was still
relatively new. Domestic news was passed by word of mouth or by private letter
quicker than could be printed in sixteenth century (Nevalainen, 2006:20). So
much of this information is not available to us. However much can be gained
from what has been left behind.
“Students of Shakespeare’s
language need to be aware of the layers of uncertainty surrounding the texts we
have available, and understand the bibliographic variables involved,” (Crystal,
2008:40)
Shakespeare is one of, if not the
most, prolific and recognised writers of the sixteenth and early seventeenth
centuries. This makes his works useful in examining the language of the period.
However, as stated above there are issues which need to be contended with and
these applying not only to Shakespeare but any document of the period? As soon
as a document passes from on person to another and is reproduced there is the
chance of change in the text, and this can come from the actual printing of the
document, not only the spelling and grammar of the printer but typesetting and
letter form also changes spelling of words (Crystal, 2008:34). These are issues
which need to be taken into account.
Bibles
“Because they [bibles] are all
translations of the same core set of texts, the different versions can throw
special light on changes in orthography, grammar and vocabulary throughout the
period.” (Crystal, 2003:59)
One of the
best places to gain information about languages is from documents which have a
recognised core text. Bibles are a perfect example of this and the prevalence
of bibles from the sixteenth century allows the researcher to examine the
changes in language through this medium. This makes them a great resource for
the period with regard to the language of the period. However, even with these
documents the researcher has to approach a particular document with care in
order that his research is not deviated by a particular form in a particular
text.
“they [bibles] display great
variation, not only in theological slant and stylistic level, but also in
typography, presentation, editorial matter, and mode of presentation.”
(Crystal, 2003:59)
Shakespeare as a Tool
One of the
greatest tools, aside from the bibles mentioned above, which has been passed
down from the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries are the works of
Shakespeare. Even taking into account the variations and problems mentioned
above they allow the researcher access to the language in a positive way.
However the language and Shakespeare need to be studied together not separate
from one another, “we should study Early Modern English alongside and through
the medium of Shakespeare.” (Crystal, 2008:231).
Shakespeare’s
works are an example of Early Modern English and thus allow an examination of
the language, but also allow an examination of the author as well and both of
these aspects need to be taken into account for the full appreciation of the
works. Even for the researcher of the language in general, as is more of the
focus of this investigation, Shakespeare’s works allow for an insight into a
single author but several approaches to the language and how it was used. Shakespeare’s
gift is to demonstrate how the language can be manipulated for a purpose
(Crystal, 2008:232). The manipulation of the language demonstrates changes in
the language which are most useful, but also demonstrate where the language was
stable which is even more useful in creating an idea of the norms of the
language.
It is the
norms of the language which form its core principles and allow for the
understanding of the language. These are places where the language is common
across different documents and authors, and even within an author. Shakespeare
was a great manipulator of the language but he also demonstrated where the
language had stabilised and both of these are essential for the complete
understanding of any language. “The more we understand the linguistic norms of
his [Shakespeare’s] age, the more we will be able to appreciate his departures
from these norms;” (Crystal, 2008:230). With the evidence examined and an
examination of the issues which are present in the study of the language it is
now possible to begin to appreciate the language as it was.
Elizabethan English
With
considerations made of approach and the evidence presented it is then possible
to begin to look at examining the target of the research, Elizabethan English.
There are things that the researcher needs to be aware of before diving
headlong into this sort of research. As much as the language is in its whole
English, it is still to a degree foreign, this is because the past is a foreign
country and thus the language is also foreign and this will result in language
difficulties.
Language
changes over time and quite dramatically, often unnoticed by those who are
speaking the language. The most evident place for this in the modern world is
in the area of slang. How this relates to the study of a previous version of a
current language is to acknowledge the changes that have taken place between
then and now. On a more focussed example, words individually and used together
also need to be considered; as the words used are a reflection of the language
as a whole, no more important with regard to this is in the consideration of
the changes in meaning over time.
Language Difficulty
“We also need to remember how
quickly the language of quite ordinary people grows strange, recedes into the
past, along with other social practices and assumptions taken for granted in
one age yet hard for a later age to understand.” (Kermode, 2000:4)
There are
many expressions which were used in the past which will be unfamiliar to those
of the present. This can even happen with the relatively recent past. When
discussing a language which was current centuries ago the importance of this
can not be emphasised enough, and this will result in difficulties for the
researcher, “the language can admittedly be difficult, even baffling.” (Kermode,
2000:4). Evidence for this can be found when a student at school comes across
Shakespeare for the first time and the questions about the language which
eventuate.
Parts of
Elizabethan English will be familiar and other parts will not be so familiar.
In order to begin to understand the language it is useful to look at the areas
in which the language is familiar in order to understand those parts which are
less comprehensible. What needs to be noticed with regard to this is that these
areas of confusion will often be in clusters, these clusters result in
variability of comprehension, resulting in patches of difficulty (Crystal, 2008:165).
It is these patches of difficulty which emphasise the difference between what
is in this and what is in the present language. People will become focussed on
these patches of difficulty without considering their context and it is here
where help can be found in understanding what is meant. Read the entirety of a speech
or passage before worrying about difficulty in part of it (Crystal, 2008:177).
This will also assist in the understanding of individual words which may be
causing difficulty.
Consideration of Words
In the
examination of a language, individual words need to be considered. They need to
be considered on their own, but also in relation to other words. Glossaries are
assembled to take into account words and their meanings in order to make it
easier for the researcher. These glossaries focus on difficult and different
words, some are words which are now unused and others are simply the same words
with different meanings, difficult and different are not the same (Crystal,
2008:146).
There are
several different categories of words, easy, difficult and different being the
primary ones. Easy words are still used today in special context, or very
familiar for example oft, perchance, and morrow (Crystal, 2008:147). These
words do not tend to find their way into glossaries due to their familiarity
and use even in the modern language, however they should not be ignored as they
may be used differently. This aspect of the language will be considered further
along.
“‘difficult’, either because it
was an Elizabethan usage no longer current or because it would pose a problem
to a modern readership despite its continued currency.” (Crystal and Crystal,
2002: viii)
Difficult
words tend to be the focus as they cause the most problems for researchers and
readers of the texts. It is significant that whether a word is considered
difficult or not is up to the author of the glossary, and thus words may be
added or left out depending on the experience and knowledge of the author.
Background is also significant
with regard to the words themselves as understanding them may require
experience in other fields of endeavour. Some words are “difficult” due to
previous knowledge required such as classical study or different language
(Crystal, 2008:147). These are often words which have been brought into the
language from others or from ancient or classical sources. For the most part without
some idea of their origin, figuring these words out can be difficult for the
researcher and it is this which determines the difference between “difficult”
and “different”. Difficult are for “words where it is not possible to deduce
from their form what they might mean” (Crystal, 2008:152), whereas different
words are usually those which have taken on a different meaning in the modern
language or used in a different way than expected.
Usage
The way in which words are used
is significant in a language as the meaning and understanding of a word can
change significantly depending on how an author uses a particular word. This is
even more important when examining Elizabethan English as the authors were less
constrained in their use of words in comparison to later periods.
“When we study Shakespeare’s
vocabulary, it is important to recognize that his period of the language – as
all other periods – is not linguistically homogeneous.” (Crystal, 2008:159)
This lack
of a homogeneous language can make things difficult for the researcher to
understand exactly what is being meant and how the word is being used. However,
it is also due to this that there is so much flexibility in the language. This
allowed Shakespeare to experiment with the language in order to achieve their
desired end. Words would be converted from nouns to verbs in a process called
conversion (Crystal, 2008:148), thus their usage could be completely changed.
This is only a simple example of the different usage in words for the language
being discussed. How words are used is at the discretion of the author and this
is significant, however this can create difficulties as has been noted, indeed
some of the words have even had extra syllables added for the verse, though the
meaning is kept (Crystal, 2008:150). This changes the pronunciation of the word
and can significantly affect it even if the word’s meaning is not changed.
Changes in meaning over time are also significant. The researcher cannot assume
that a word means the same as it does now.
Meaning
The meaning
of words is their purpose, as we use language to create understanding through
the expression of meaning. Problems occur when the understanding is lost often
due to a different meaning of a word. This can only exacerbated by the author
and reader being separated by an expanse of time as the modern researcher is
separated from those authors of the Elizabethan period.
Even simple
words can change meaning over time and develop their own meaning which is
different from an earlier one (Crystal and Crystal, 2002: viii). This is a
problem which the researcher needs to be acutely aware of in the examination of
a previous language. Words can seem very familiar, but can have different
meaning due to a change over time these words are often termed false friends
(faux amis) where the modern meaning different from the period meaning, these
are familiar words which actually are not in this the context of the word is
important for its definition (Crystal, 2008:156).
The context allows the researcher
to see how the word is being used and thus assists in creating understanding of
the word. The researcher needs to see the words as the author did and in the
same context in order to really understand what the author was attempting to
convey. Words which have come through to the modern language which have
developed new meanings are the prime example of where the researcher needs to
be careful with regard to this. Perspective is important, much of Shakespeare’s
language is very similar if not the same as modern (Crystal, 2008:175).
There are
examples of this which can be made in order to demonstrate the changes in the
meaning of a word over time. To begin with “blot”, often used in the modern
language to present a mistake made by a person whereas in Early Modern English
“blot” was to make a correction or erasure (Crystal, 2008:34), thus correct a
mistake rather than make one. This is a very subtle change in the language
which results in a difference in meaning. Politician comes from politic which
meant “shrewd” and then gradually developed a double-meaning as “crafty”, thus
the word develops as two-faced describing a political office but also as
“schemer” (Gooden, 2009:78). This presents a short timeline from one meaning to
another demonstrating the changes in the meaning of the word over time. In
order to understand a language as it was, it must be put in context.
Conclusion
The
language of the Elizabethan period holds many familiar elements which each
reader will recognise, however it also has many elements which are not familiar
to many, and it is the balance between these which is important. Assumptions
must not be made about elements of the language should not be made without
evidence to support them and it is here that the investigation into the
language begins. The context of the language is important and assumptions must
not be made about how the language may work or the meanings of words without
evidence to support these findings. In some ways the familiar elements of the
language can lead the researcher into traps with regard to meaning and how the
language works and this is something in which care must be taken.
In order to
discover the elements of a language and how the work they must be seen first in
their original context in order to understand them properly as they were. This
means that the primary material for research and examination of the language
should be from the period which is being studied. Secondary sources about the
technical aspects of the language are useful and can assist the researcher
greatly, but it is only through reading the language of the period that an
understanding of the flow and tempo of the language can be appreciated. This
process will also allow for the familiar and the different parts of the
language to make themselves known to the researcher in order that a greater
appreciation can be made of the language.
There are
considerations that must be made before research is begun as each has its own
impact upon the research. One of the things that must first be established is
an appreciation of the language as it was, and not in comparison to the current
language. The differences based upon rules which may or may not apply are some
of the aspects which give the language its richness and allow the researcher an
appreciation of what the language was. The language must be learnt and
appreciated as it was, and as such learnt like any unfamiliar language. The way
in which the language is approached will colour the investigation.
In the
search for evidence of a language the best place to go for this is the source.
In the case of languages such as Early Modern English, this means written texts
the best place for this is from primary ones. Primary sources give the
researcher a direct door into the language to see it as it was originally
presented without any interpretation, and this is where the researcher must be
careful. There are many sources which will claim to be direct copies of the
originals, but even minor changes in order to make the language more readable
can have an impact on the language, especially with regard to spelling and
punctuation.
Secondary sources from recognised
authors on the language are useful in that they give some insight into the
language from a more technical point of view. This is useful as they describe
how the language works, however in using a secondary version of an original
text the researcher must be careful as the form of the language may have
changed, and thus the meaning also. These may be used in order to gain some of
the feel of the language but should not be relied upon. Just as dictionaries
are used as a tool so too should other secondary sources be used in the same
fashion. Secondary sources should be used to confirm or assist the
investigation of the language, hence their use here.
Languages change over time and
this is one of the exciting things about them. Seeing changes in language
demonstrates a change in the understanding of how things work. Following these
changes through a language can gain the researcher a deeper understanding of
their own language in the process. In the case of the study of Elizabethan
English, as is the case of all languages, words are only the beginning.
Individual words must be placed into context in order to gain their full
meaning and a real understanding of the language, thus punctuation and even the
form of the text are important. This is the reason that dictionaries and
lexicons only form one part of understanding a language as words will have
different meanings depending on their circumstances, and thus to understand the
language it must be appreciated in its entirety.
Elizabethan English forms only a
small section of the subject which is Early Modern English and thus the
investigation of this language needs to be focussed, but also must take into
account the elements on a larger scale. In order to appreciate the language of
the period being discussed, only the sources from that period should be used.
For primary sources this is relatively easy, for secondary ones dealing with the
technical aspects of the language this is more difficult. This is the reason
why aspects of the overall language need to be taken into account, especially
to fill in those aspects which otherwise may not be taken into account. However
with careful use of these sources and an understanding of where the language
fits into the overall picture a real feeling for the language and understanding
can be made.
Bibliography
Crystal, D. (2003) The
Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language (2nd ed),
Cambridge University Press, New York, USA
Crystal, D. (2008) ‘Think
on my Words’: Exploring Shakespeare’s Language, Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, UK
Crystal, D. (2010) Evolving
English: One Language, Many Voices, The British Library, London, UK
Crystal, D. and Crystal, B. (2002) Shakespeare’s Words: A Glossary and Language Companion, Penguin
Books, London, UK
Gooden, P. (2009) The
Story of English: How the English Language Conquered the World, Quercus
Publishing Plc, London, UK
Görlach, M. (1997) The
Linguistic History of English, Macmillan Press Ltd, London, UK
Kermode, F. (2000) Shakespeare’s
Language, Penguin Books Ltd, London UK
Nevalainen, T. (2006) An
Introduction to Early Modern English, Edinburgh University Press,
Edinburgh, Scotland
